In Italy tonight, everyone's having the same thing for dinner, and there's no doubt that it's going to smell terrific.

Forbes magazine food and travel writer Larry Olmsted tells NPR's Jacki Lyden that it's Parmigiano-Reggiano night in Italy. It's all about the cheese — and not that stuff you buy in the green plastic canister — but the real stuff, made in the country's world-famous Emilia-Romagna region, in the city of Parma.

Using social media and other methods to spread the word, Parmigiano-Reggiano promoters are "trying to get people all throughout Italy to eat the same meal at the same time, sort of a virtual, national sit-down dinner in people's own homes, and to a lesser extent, restaurants," says Olmsted. They're calling it the biggest Italian dinner in history.

Organizers say the dinner is designed to promote the revitalization of the Parma region. Cheese producers there are still struggling because earlier this year, a series of earthquakes toppled shelves containing millions of dollars worth of the cheese, aged for two years in giant, five-story buildings.

Looking at the warehouses before the quake, you'd see "nothing but cheese as far as the eye can see." Olmsted tells Lyden. "And the wheels are huge, like tires. They weigh 80-something pounds. Several hundred thousand of wheels of cheese fell off the shelves during the earthquake. So, long story short — a lot of cheese hit the floor."

But it's not just cheese the region is famous for.

"All the good stuff comes from Parma," Olmsted says. Prosciutto di Parma. Two of Europe's largest food producers, agri-giant Parmalat and Barilla, are there. And Modena, next to Parma, is the epicenter of the gourmet vinegar trade, where Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale di Modena is made.

"If there is an Italian product you would go to a gourmet store to buy, there is a high likelihood it comes from Emilia-Romagna," Olmsted writes. "But the key is the cheese — the king of cheese."

Now there's a new push to make sure it's hitting the saucepan — thanks to world-famous Italian chef Massimo Bottura of the highly rated restaurant Osteria Francescana in Modena.

Bottura developed the recipe Italians will be serving tonight, using that world-famous cheese. It's called cacio e pepe, pasta with cheese and pepper — but there's a twist.

Olmsted says Bottura "switched out the pasta for a risotto because northern Italy is rice-based rather than pasta-based. And then he switched the cheese, which would normally be a local Roman cheese. He substituted the Parmiganio-Regginao to sort of tie the whole country together in this one fairly simple dish."

"To me, it's the iconic cheese of the Italian cuisine," Bottura himself told NPR. "I believe in this. I believe in tradition. I believe in quality of the food you eat."

According to Olmsted, hundreds of thousands of Italians are expected to take part in tonight's dinner.

If you'd like a seat at the table, Chef Bottura shared with us a copy of his risotto recipe, below.

Risotto Cacio e Pepe

1/2 pounds Parmigiano-Reggiano, aged for 30 months

4 quarts still mineral water

17.5 ounces Vialone Nano or other arborio rice

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon white peppercorns

1 teaspoon Szechuan or black peppercorns

1 teaspoon long Jamaican peppercorns

1 teaspoon Sarawak peppercorns

Parmigiano-Reggiano water, made 24 hours ahead

To make the Parmigiano-Reggiano water: Grate the cheese and mix with the room-temperature mineral water in a large pan.

On the stovetop, slowly heat the water until the Parmigiano-Reggiano starts to form threads at the bottom. A thermometer will read between 176 and 194 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove the pan from the heat and let it to cool to room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap and leave overnight in the fridge.

The next day, take the solid part that has formed on the top and place it in a bowl. This will be used to cream the risotto. Strain remaining solid part to collect the Parmigiano-Reggiano water. Cut the solid part into thin slices and cook in the microwave for a couple of seconds. This is tasty with crackers!

To make the risotto: Over low heat, simmer Parmigiano-Reggiano water in a pot. Put the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pan. Add the rice and toast until it starts to warm up.

Wet the rice with the Parmigiano-Reggiano water. Stir and continue cooking, adding liquid as you would with any risotto. About three-quarters of the way through cooking, add a little bit of the solids that separated from the Parmigiano-Reggiano water.

When the rice is ready, in 30-35 minutes, remove the pan from the heat and briskly mix in the remainder of cheese to give the risotto a creamy texture.

Crack the pepper individually and grind the Jamaican pepper. Spread the risotto out on a plate and sprinkle generously with the various types of pepper. Serves 4.

Copyright 2013 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.

Transcript

JACKI LYDEN, HOST:

In Italy tonight, everyone is eating the same thing for dinner.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

LYDEN: In a story of cheese and reclamation, we begin with the man who drew our attention to this great Italian moment, food writer Larry Olmstead just back from a trip.

LARRY OLMSTEAD: Well, it's parmesan night in Italy, and they're trying a new thing where using the power of social media, they're trying to get people all throughout Italy to eat the same meal at the same time, sort of a virtual, national sit-down dinner but in people's own homes and to a lesser extent restaurants.

LYDEN: The reason for all this cheese bliss is a series of earthquakes earlier this year in the parmesan region of Emilia-Romagna. The quakes toppled shelves of that world-famous cheese, which is aged for two years in giant five-story-high warehouses.

OLMSTEAD: Yeah. I mean, of course, when I go in an apartment building, when you go in there, you're just looking up at the roof of this huge warehouse, and it's nothing but cheese as far as the eye can see. And the wheels are always the same size. They're huge and like tires. They weigh 80-something pounds. Several hundred thousand wheels of cheese fell off the shelves during the earthquake. So long story short, a lot of cheese hit the floor.

LYDEN: Tonight, in solidarity with the cheese makers of Parma, Italians are letting their Parmigiano-Reggiano - as they call it - hit the saucepan.

OLMSTEAD: All the good stuff comes from Parma: prosciutto di Parma, which I think everybody loves. A lot of Italy's most famous brands are based there - Barilla pasta, which everybody knows, pasta and sauce, Parmalat, which makes the homemade boxed tomatoes. All of this comes from Parma. They just have a centuries-old tradition of great food. But the key is the cheese, the king of cheese.

LYDEN: So the Italians turn to their king of chefs, Massimo Bottura's restaurant in Modena. Osteria Francescana is one of the world's best. And he designed the recipe on Italian tables tonight, using that delectable and competent cheese. The dish is called cacio e pepe, pasta with cheese and pepper. Chef Massimo Bottura.

MASSIMO BOTTURA: First of all, the name: cacio e pepe. Cacio e pepe is a classic dish from the Roman cuisine that's usually served with pecorino and pasta. But we decide to change and to get cacio e pepe reflect to my territorio, noh?

LYDEN: Larry Olmstead, who just dined at Bottura's restaurant, notes how the chef reinterpreted a classic recipe.

OLMSTEAD: He switched out the pasta for a risotto because northern Italy is rice-based rather than pasta-based, and then he switched the cheese out to a normal, the local Roman cheese or often pecorino. He substituted the Parmigiano-Reggiano to sort of tie the whole country together in this one fairly simple dish.

BOTTURA: For me, it's the iconic cheese of Italian cuisine. I believe in this. In believe in tradition. I believe in quality of the food you eat.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

LYDEN: Of course, even though by now most Italians have finished their dinner and are perhaps sipping a glass of Fernet, I had to give Chef Massimo Bottura's risotto a try. So I invited a couple of Italians over. They came all the way from Rome a little jetlagged.

SYLVIA POGGIOLI, BYLINE: (Italian spoken)

PIERO BENETAZZO: (Italian spoken)

LYDEN: Grazie. You know Sylvia Poggioli, NPR's senior European correspondent, who came with her husband Piero Benetazzo. But pretty soon, I let Sylvia take over the kitchen.